Air-feed devices for carburetors



Oct. 37, 1967 Y J. A. ERBSTOESSER 3,347,028

AIR-FEED DEVICES FOR CARBURETORS Filed Feb. 23, 1966 f4 [risfocsser United States Patent Ofiice 3,347,028 Patented Oct. 17, 1967 3,347,028 AIR-FEED DEVICES FOR CARBURETORS James A. Erbstoesser, 7814 S. Kostner Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60629 Filed Feb. 23, 1966, Ser. No. 529,470

3 Claims. (Cl. 55-510) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An air-feed device used in combination on the air-intake tube of a carburetor in which a torous-shaped chamber is formed between a tray and frusto-conical-like member and diverges uniformly toward the air-intake tube, and the outer periphery of the chamber is formed by a toroidal air-cartridge and the parts are detachably clamped in assembled relation.

My invention relates to means for feeding air into the air-intake chambers of carburetors, and is an improvement on the device covered in my Patent No. 3,224,174 issued Dec. 21, 1965.

The device in my patent ,was designed particularly for the carburetors of motor car engines, and with a view to receiving air forced by the cooling fan of the engine. For this purpose the device employed a hood-like upper unit open in front and underneath for receiving forced air and training it into the device.

In the improved device I have found it unnecessary to depend on forced air, and one object of the improvement is to eliminate the hood and draw atmospheric air from all lateral directions, rendering the device useful not only for motor car engines but also for stationary engines.

A further object of the improved device is to provide a cone-like chamber with an entrance on all sides, and to mount a conventional air-cleaner cartridge in such entrance for filtering the air which is drawn into the chamber.

Another object is to impart a curvature to the walls of the chamber just referred to effective to lead and compress air drawn into the chamber, whereby to feed air at an increased velocity and at a substantially uniform pressure into the carburetor and improve the resulting fuel mixture.

A still further object is to broaden the device without impairing its efficiency, and to keep it low enough to fit under low hoods prevalent in motor cars.

A better understanding of the device may be gained by reference to the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of an internal combustion engine showing the improved air-feed device mounted above the carburetor of the engine;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged plan view of the device, partly broken away; and

FIG. 3 is a further enlarged vertical section of the device.

Referring specifically to the drawing, denotes the airintake tube of a conventional carburetor, such tube having a marginal ledge 10a near the top; and 12 denotes the choke valve usually located in the air-intake tube.

The improved air-feed device employs two major partsone above the otherpressed or stamped from sturdy sheet metal. The lower part is a flared circular receptacle 15 which assumes a substantially horizontal course toward its rim, the latter terminating with an up ward flange 15a. The curvature of the receptacle toward its inner end forms a tubular neck 15b which terminates with a marginal flange 150 matching the marginal ledge 10a of the carburetor air-intake tube 10. A rubber gasket 17 is interposed between the flange 15c and ledge 10a, so that down-pressure on the receptacle will compress the gasket and procure a hermetical seal between the receptacle and the air-intake tube.

The upper major part of the device is an inverted or frusto-conical-like cone 18 disposed co-axially above the receptacle 15. The sides of the cone 18 are curved similarly to those of the receptacle, whereby to assume a course parallel to that of the receptacle in the outer region.

A toroidal air-cleaner cartridge 20 of conventional design is fitted between the outer portions of the cone 18 and receptacle or tray 15 as shown in FIG. 3. The flange 1511 forms a guard for the cartridge at the bottom, while an upward oifset 18a forms a seat at the rim of the cone 18, for the cartridge at the top.

When properly fitted, the receptacle 15 may be considered as supported by and engaging the air-intake tube 10. However, the air-filter cartridge 20 and the bottom flange 15c and ledge 10a require a press-fit to hold fast, and this is procured by applying down pressure to the cone 18. The means for this purpose originate with a cross-bar 22 cast across the upper end of the air-intake tube 10; or, the cross-bar may be in the form of a clip. The cross-bar is formed with a tapped hub 23 in the center into which a vertical rod 25 is screwed with its lower end portion. The rod rises through a central aperture 18b of the cone 18 and near the top through a pressure plate 26 to terminate with a threaded portion 25a which receives a wing nut 28. The pressure plate is beveled at its periphery-as noted at 28ato bear on the middle portion of the cone 18 when the wing nut is screwed down, and transmit pressure through the air-cleaner cartridge 20 to the receptacle 15 and the joint of the flange 15c and ledge 10a with the interposed gasket 17. This joint must be tight in order that atmospheric air may not be drawn in to interfere with the direct flow from the air-feed device into the carburetor.

The improved air-feed device as described is a simplification of the one in my patent not only by the elimination of the hood, but also by the adaptation of the device by means of only two major parts to the popular and most'efiicient type of air-cleaning unit for carburetors, namely, the toroidal cartridge 20. The cartridge facilitates the entrance of a maximum amount of air from all sides, and is situated in an area where its removal and replace ment present no problem. Thus, it is only necessary to unscrew the wing nut 28, remove the pressure plate 26, and raise the cone 18 off the center rod 25 in order to gain full access to the cartridge 20 when it is time to replace it; and, when this has been done, the circular plate 26 exerts even pressure on all sides to seat the receptacle uniformly on the air-intake tube of the carburetor. Further, the air drawn through the air cleaner into the de vice does not have to be trained with friction along an outer wallas in the patented device-but has a direct path to enter the device from all sides and gain pressure by gradual reduction from the sides to simulate the action in a supercharger. The air entering the device from the sides also has the most convenient path into the vertical air-intake tube of the carburetor by assuming a gradually-curved downward path through the chamber formed by the cone 18 and receptacle 15, encountering minimum surface resistance. The device therefore operates with improved efficiency toward creating a desirable fuel mixture, and procures better fuel economy as a result.

I claim:

1. In an air-feed system comprising an air-intake tube for a carburetor; and an air-feed device for filtering air adapted to be introduced into said device and said tube with minimum back pressure, the improvement wherein:

said air-feed device comprises an impervious, annular tray having an open central tubular neck portion having a longitudinal axis, sealingly engaged on said air-intake tube; said tubular neck portion c0ntinuously flaring outwardly and upwardly and merging into a substantially horizontal planar portion disposed normally to the longitudinal axis of said neck; hollow cylindrical filter cartridge having side walls and top and hollow walls, said cartridge being removably seated and extending along the outer periphery of said substantially planar portion;

hollow, substantially conical air-impervious mem ber spaced above said tray and coaxial with said neck, said member having an outer horizontal, peripheral substantially planar portion of substantially the same radial extent as the first mentioned planar portion, the apex of said conical member extending downwardly through said hollow filter element and into said tubular neck and the planar portion thereof positioned on the top wall of said filter element, said tray and said conical member defining with said filter a generally frusto-conical chamber having its largest dimension at the inner surface of the filter and continuously and smoothly converging to its smallest dimension at said apex;

and retaining means operatively connected to said air intake tube clamping said tray, said filter and said member in assembled relationship on said intake tube whereby air is introduced into said frusto-conical chamber and progressively increases in velocity through said chamber and is then introduced directly into said air intake tube.

2. The structure as claimed in claim 1 in which said tray and said hollow conical member include outer peripheral flanged seats embracingly engaging respective opposed bottom and top walls of said filter-cartridge for orienting and vstabilizing the assembled relation of said air-feed device.

3. The structure as claimed in claim 1 in which said retaining means comprises an annular clamp plate positioned on said conical member exteriorly and axially of said converging chamber, a retaining rod terminally sea cured axially within said air-intake tube and extending axially through the apex of said conical member and through said clamp plate, and a retaining element removably connected to said rod and clampingly engaging said plate.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,939,775 6/ 1960 Middleton et a1. 55-510 2,996,145 8/1961 Thornburgh 55498 3,224,174 12/ 1965 Erbstoesser 55-418 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,237,198 6/ 1960 France.

HARRY B. THORNTON, Primary Examiner.

B. NOZICK, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN AN AIR-FEED SYSTEM COMPRISING AN AIR-INTAKE TUBE FOR A CARBURETOR; AND AN AIR-FEED DEVICE FOR FILTERING AIR ADAPTED TO BE INTRODUCED INTO SAID DEVICE AND SAID TUBE WITH MINIMUM BACK PRESSURE, THE IMPROVEMENT WHEREIN: SAID AIR-FEED DEVICE COMPRISES AN IMPERVIOUS, ANNULAR TRAY HAVING AN OPEN CENTRAL TUBULAR NECK PORTION HAVING A LONGITUDINAL AXIS, SEALINGLY ENGAGED ON SAID AIR-INTAKE TUBE; SAID TUBULAR NECK PORTION CONTINUOUSLY FLARING OUTWARDLY AND UPWARDLY AND MERGING INTO A SUBSTANTIALLY HORIZONTAL PLANAR PORTION DISPOSED NORMALLY TO THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF SAID NECK; A HOLLOW CYLINDRICAL FILTER CARTRIDGE HAVING SIDE WALLS AND TOP AND HOLLOW WALLS, SAID CARTRIDGE BEING REMOVABLY SEATED AND EXTENDING ALONG THE OUTER PERIPHERY OF SAID SUBSTANTIALLY PLANAR PORTION; A HOLLOW, SUBSTANTIALLY CONICAL AIR-IMPERVIOUS MEMBER SPACED ABOVE SAID TRAY AND COAXIAL WITH SAID NECK, SAID MEMBER HAVING AN OUTER HORIZONTAL, PERIPHERAL SUBSTANTIALLY PLANAR PORTION OF SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME RADIAL EXTENT AS THE FIRST MENTIONED PLANAR PORTION, THE APEX OF SAID CONICAL MEMBER EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY THROUGH SAID HOLLOW FILTER ELEMENT AND INTO SAID TUBULAR NECK AND THE PLANAR PORTION THEREOF POSITIONED ON THE TOP WALL OF SAID FILTER ELEMENT, SAID TRAY AND SAID CONICAL MEMBER DEFINING WITH SAID FILTER A GENERALLY FRUSTO-CONICAL CHAMBER HAVING ITS LARGEST DIMENSION AT THE INNER SURFACE OF THE FILTER AND CONTINUOUSLY AND SMOOTHLY CONVERGING TO ITS SMALLEST DIMENSION AT SAID APEX; AND RETAINING MEANS OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID AIR INTAKE TUBE CLAMPING SAID TRAY, SAID FILTER AND SAID MEMBER IN ASSEMBLED RELATIONSHIP ON SAID INTAKE TUBE WHEREBY AIR IS INTRODUCED INTO SAID FRUSTO-CONICAL CHAMBER AND PROGRESSIVELY INCREASES IN VELOCITY THROUGH SAID CHAMBER AND IS THEN INTRODUCED DIRECTLY INTO SAID AIR INTAKE TUBE. 